GeoCities Shareholders to Vote on Deal

Yahoo Inc. is planning to close its $2.94-billion acquisition of GeoCities today after GeoCities shareholders vote to approve the deal in Marina del Rey this morning. Five GeoCities shareholders who collectively hold a stake of about 60% have agreed to support the merger, so approval of the deal is assured.

GeoCities pioneered the business of building communities on the Internet by allowing customers to set up free Web pages, grouping them according to themes, and then selling advertisements to make money. Yahoo agreed to buy the Marina del Rey company in January to add features to its industry-leading Internet portal site.

After the deal closes, about 100 GeoCities employees will be transferred to Yahoo’s Santa Clara, Calif., headquarters. About 200 other GeoCities employees will lose their jobs after a transition period, which will last through early fall, according to sources familiar with the companies’ plans.

While the deal leaves hundreds of workers unemployed, it hardly leaves them empty-handed. Every GeoCities employee has stock options that will vest when the firm is sold. The value of those options packages ranges from several thousand to several million dollars, insiders say. In addition, job placement has been smooth because Tech Coast firms are eager to hire GeoCities veterans.